The 20 Most Anticipated PC Games of 2014

20 games that will make or break 2014

Is there anything better than cranking up the settings and sitting down to play an amazing PC game? 2013 was a great year for PC gamers, but 2014 looks to be even better. Games like Watch Dogs, The Division, and The Witcher 3 are looking amazing so far. With that said, we've compiled a list of 20 games you should get excited about.

What games are you looking forward to in 2014? Let us know in the comments!

The 20 Most Anticipated PC Games of 2014

Thief(Trailer)Release date: February 25, 2014
Dishonored took the gaming world by storm and Thief was its chief inspiration. It fell by the wayside in recent years, but the reboot being developed by Eidos Montreal is sizing up to be a hit. Stealth-based gameplay with a snappy combat system makes for a game that we know we'll enjoy.

Titanfall(Trailer)Release date: March 11, 2014Titanfall made waves when it was announced at E3 earlier this year. It looks to be the mech shooter that we’ve been waiting for—the pace of Hawken mixed with the simulation-style customization of MechWarrior Online. If there's one thing everyone loves, it's mechs.

Diablo III: Reaper of Souls(Trailer)Release date: March 25, 2014Depending on who you ask, Diablo III was either a flop or a success. Blizzard’s ironed out most of the game’s major hiccups and has the first expansion: Reaper of Souls slated for release on March 25, 2014. The expansion will add the fifth act of the story and introduce the Crusader class—melee warriors armed with flails and spells.

The Elder Scrolls Online(Trailer)Release date: April 4, 2014It may not be made by Bethesda Game Studios, but it’s still an Elder Scrolls game and that’s enough to have us interested. Three factions—the Daggerfall Covenant, Aldmeri Dominion, and Ebonheart Pact—clash in an MMORPG set in the continent of Tamriel. We're not sure if it'll be as majestic as Skyrim, but we're keeping our fingers crossed.

Dark Souls II(Trailer)Release date: May 31, 2014Dark Souls II needs no introduction. It’s the definition of hardcore and despite some huge problems with the PC ports, Demon Souls and Dark Souls were both amazing. We’re crossing our fingers in the hopes that Dark Souls II will be amazing on PC.

Transistor(Trailer)Release date: Early 2013Supergiant Games hit it out of the park with Bastion and their follow-up is another action RPG, but this time, it also has some turn-based elements. It looks to be a great follow-up to a game that looked, played, and sounded absolutely amazing. Plus, how many games have a talking sword as a narrator?

Watch Dogs(Trailer)Release date: Q2 2014If there’s any game more ambitious than Watch Dogs, we haven’t heard of it. The third-person open-world game from Ubisoft mixes hacking, combat, and unique player interaction in a way that we haven’t seen yet. It's been delayed, but it's still a game that all gamers should be waiting for.

The Witness(Trailer)Release date: Mid-2014Jonathan Blow was one of the first indie developers to reach superstar status with Braid. He’s finally back with The Witness. It’s an exploration-based puzzle game that revolves around an empty island. It’s reminiscent of PC-classic Myst—in a good way. We’re huge fans of Braid and we’re looking forward to what comes next.

Dragon Age: Inquisition(Trailer)Release date: Q3 2014BioWare dropped the ball with Dragon Age 2, but it’s got a good chance at making things right with Dragon Age: Inquisition. The RPG will still take place in Thedas, but will feature a completely new protagonist and is set after the events of Dragon Age II.

Evolve(Trailer)Release date: Q3 2014We don’t have much to go on, but we think Evolve looks pretty amazing from what we’ve seen. Developed by Turtle Rock Studios, they’re the team who made Left 4 Dead, the game is shaping up to be something of a combination of Borderlands and Left 4 Dead. Four players face off against a giant, player-controlled monster.

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number(Trailer)Release date: Q3 2014Even if you haven’t played the game, you’ve probably heard of Hotline Miami at some point. It’s a gruesome top-down shooter with retro stylings and a psychedelic story. Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is tied to the story of the first game and will follow parallel plotlines. The focus is still on shooting, stealth, and gore.

The Crew(Trailer)Release date: Q3 2014It was originally meant to be a launch title for the PS4 and Xbox One, but it’s now set to release sometime in the coming months. Ubisoft calls it a combination of multiplayer and singleplayer mechanics with four-player car teams working together to complete objectives in a game that sounds like Midnight Club crossed with GTA.

The Evil Within(Trailer)Release date: Q4 2014Shinji Mikami left Capcom and Platinum Games to start his own studio—Tango Gameworks which has since been picked up by Bethesda. The Evil Within is the last game he plans on directing and it’s going to be “pure survival horror.” Fans of Resident Evil should pay close attention to The Evil Within.

Hearthstone(Trailer)Release date: 2014Hearthstone has finally moved into open beta with access available to anyone who’s interested and we’re definitely interested. It’s ridiculous to think that the game will change very much before it releases, but we’re excited to get the final product whenever Blizzard finally decides it's ready for prime time.

Mad Max(Trailer)Release date: 2014Not much has been revealed about the classic movie turned video game, but we know that it's being made by the team at Avalanche Studios. It’s safe to say that they’ve got a pedigree in creating open world games considering that they made Just Cause and Just Cause 2. We loved the movie and we’re looking forward to the game.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt(Trailer)Release date: 2014The Witcher series is saying goodbye to Geralt—Wild Hunt will be the final part of Geralt’s story. It’s also the first game in the franchise that will be truly open-world. Geralt has always been the king of hardcore Western RPGs. If you’re even remotely familiar with The Witcher, this is definitely a game to look out for.

Tom Clancy’s The Division(Trailer)Release date: 2014DayZ was, and still is a standout in the history of PC gaming. The Division is Ubisoft Massive’s take on the genre with a virus destroying civilization. Players will explore the crumbling remains of New York City with integrated PvP and an emphasis on player interaction.

Wolfenstein: The New Order(Trailer)Release date: 2014Wolfenstein 3D started the FPS craze and most of the Wolfenstein games have been received relatively well. The New Order is the latest entry in the franchise and although it doesn’t look like a game changer, we love shooters, and it's hard to argue with such a good-looking game.

World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor(Trailer)Release date: 2014WoW is getting long in the tooth, but Warlords of Draenor will breath new life into the 10-year-old game. The level cap will jump to 100 with a new world added and yet another graphical overhaul. It’s not game-changing, but if you’re looking for an excuse to jump back into World of Warcraft, this is it.

Star Citizen(Trailer)Release date: 2014-15Chris Roberts is back with the spiritual successor to Wing Commander. After a Kickstarter that blew past it’s goals with over $2 million pledged, a lot of people are eagerly awaiting the release of Star Citizen. It’s setting itself up to take on EVE Online as a persistent game with a giant universe filled with trading, dogfighting, and exploration.

Dark Souls seems to have absolutely no support on the PC. They never even patched out GFWL. I am very skeptical about any sort of decent PC support for Dark Souls 2. I won't make the same mistake twice.

Other than that, I think this is a fine list. Isn't Starcraft 2's 2nd expansion (Legacy of the Void) due this year as well?

If you include Legacy of the Void, that's at least 4 PC exclusive titles in 2014 and a bunch of multiplatform titles. So, it looks like PC gaming is handily putting those new consoles to shame. Destiny is perhaps the only console exclusive that I will be getting (for last-gen). There are a few others with potential on the next-gen consoles.

So, while I would like to see AMD get business with the new game consoles, I really want developers to focus more on PC. It's just a better platform.

Titans in titan fall do look like fun, but the rest of the game looks to much like a call of duty style shooter with advanced technology. If I get a beta key I will give it a shot though if it's still going on.

Correct title should be 20 most hyped games of 2014, or even games with the biggest marketing budget of 2014. 15 or so are just going back to the well with tired IP, half of these simply assume that the original game was a by the numbers formula that they can hand out to just any studio and get sales (true: a good game is another question).

I'll admit that when Elder Scrolls Online was announced, I was anticipating. Ever single thing I've heard since then (from a few days after the announcement to a few days ago) has made me less interested in the thing (and I got addicted to MMOs after needing another hit of what Oblivion gave me).

The other biggie is Star Citizen. I really don't think game design is something you can walk away from and get right back into, especially when you consider both software methods and content creation needed for modern games. Still, the Wing Commander series were my favorite computer games of all time for a long time (and as my user name implies, that is saying something) and I'd love to see what he can still do. The other thing about Star Citizen is that it is the only game on here that I am aware of making a commitment to integrating with the Oculus Rift. That is pretty so much the *most anticipated item in gaming* item for me to as to make this list moot.

I myself have never been a fan of the Elder Scrolls franchise due to whatever reason. Mostly because I tried Oblivion and it just felt clunky to me, game looked great for the time it came out, something about it just felt off to me.

However, after participating in ESO betas over the past month, It's shaping up to be a game I'm going to enjoy.

Beta bugs aside, the game is absolutely beautiful. It runs much faster than Rift on my computer and looks way better while doing it. The combat gets better with each patch, they just added collision detection in the last beta patch and it feels much more intuitive than before. The crafting system is easy, yet complex enough to keep you interested, and the world, like I said before is absolutely gorgeous and huge.

I'll definitely be pushing Rift to the wayside and start playing this once it's released.

The showings for Star Citizen haven't been very prepossessing, screenshot in this article included. This could easily be Freelancer 2.0-a great idea held back by a woefully inadequate implementation.

Chris Roberts is a dreamer who has an obvious disconnect with reality regarding his games. He needs someone to adapt his ideas to reality and he really needs to get some other people to do the bulk of the PR. Microsoft pulled the plug on Freelancer because his dreamer ways were burning cash with little result and Star Citizen does not have the massive backing of M$...

Actually, Star Citizen doesn't need the backing of some entity like M$. Since the Kickstarter, they are over $38 million generated by the people that want to play the game. This means they can develop the game how they want it, without some jackwagon that couldn't spell space if you spotted him 5 letters getting in the way...

They said there are currently no plans for PC. If it does come to PC, it could be 2015 given that the game doesn't launch on consoles until Sep '14. So, it doesn't really make the cut for "Most anticipated games of 2014"

we all know the crew is going to be a horrible game. its so rushed, just look at that picture, they arent into in-depth. look at the call of duty games that are released every year. things take 4 years, not 2 years.

I'm pretty sure Bethesda shelved it. And now Carmack is no longer with id. So don't get your hopes up. Personally, I thought Doom 3 was a glorified tech demo. RAGE was not a good game either. So getting your hopes up for a Doom 4 could be setting yourself up for disappointment.

Anxiously waiting for Elite Dangerous. Ordered the original C64 version of Elite direct from England. Took over a week just to learn how to dock at the space station. Some of the best gaming ever and looking forward to more!

I agree, But on that note I like FPS games that you don't have to play online as I found out the hard way that if they find out you are an much older person than they are (I'm 62), the younger generation will lock you out of that game or games permanently.

I'm all about Dark Souls II screw the rest all hype so far.
I pre ordered the Ps3 version too.. I'm a controller person with this game plus it comes out ealier then the PC version. Also the PC version will be about 25.00 on Steam in the summer time by that time I'll have it finished but you can never Finish the Dark Souls!

I hope that Avalanche Studios has finally realized that coop and multiplayer are awesome and are putting them into this Mad Max game as Just Cause 2 sorely needed coop (which, tragically, the multiplayer mod doesn't appear to add).

Star citizen, dragon Age 3, Elder scrolls online, the next Witcher all sound great but I am waiting to sword of the avatar from Richard Garriot (Lord British)which should be the spiritual descendent of the legendary Ultima series.

Still looking forward to Grand Theft Auto 5 on the PC but maybe it's too little too late for the game? Several of these others look great. Could add a little more love in there with Starbound and Day-Z.

I'm still waiting for confirmation that Star Citizen will be a truly 3d game. I loved Freelancer-despite its unfinished status and backwards graphics-but every space station and celestial body being stationary and on the same plane was grating.

I'm also hoping that the scaling is right this time. My ship being almost the size of the planets in Freelancer, and almost being larger than the space stations, was ridiculous. The residential areas of the space stations that were supposed to hold hundreds were smaller than Edison Trent (player character model)!

Exactly, it's a good thing NCSoft is only publishing Wildstar, not developing it as the game is developed by Carbine Studio with core of ex blizzard people. That's why so many people are anticipating this release and finally moving on from WoW.

Yet on the other hand, Blade Soul will be developed by NCSoft and based on the mechanics and graphics that are catered toward Korean market, it looks to be as shallow and disappointing as all their previous eye candy mmo are.